Work-lifting apparatus.



W. F. IRRGANG.

WORK LIFTING APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED Jun; 25. 1917.

Patented: Dec. 4, 1912".

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' WITNESS.

11v VEN-TOR A TTOR NE Y.

w. F. IRRGANG. WORK LIFTING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 25. I9I7.

Patented Dec. 4,1917? 5 SHEETS-SHEET 2 Wmii 4 INVENTOR.

WITNESS A TTORNE Y.

W. FLIRRGANG. WORK IQIFTING APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED mm: 25. 1917.

lmwm Patented n80. 4,1911,

5 SHEEYS SHEET 3- WITNESS INVENTOR.

B Ma W A TTORNE YS.

w. F. IRRGANG. WORK LIFTINGAPPARATUS.

APPLHIAIION FILED JUNE 25. 19W.

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I INVENTOR 17 WITNESS ATTORNEYS.

W. F. IRRGANG. WORK LlFTlNG APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 25.1917.

Patented 10%. 4, 1917.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 5- A TTORNE YS.

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WORK LIFTING APPABA'IUfi Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 1 191W.

Application filed June 25, 1917. Serial No. 176,739.

To all whom it may concern:

. Be it known that 1, WILLIAM F. IRRGANG, a citizen of the United Statesof America, residing at Springfield, in the county of l'lampden andState of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and usefulImprovementsin VVork-Lifting Apparatus, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to a lifting device for use in mills or factorieswhere material It is par ticularly designed for use with the plat formsor skids of a master truck system. The latter includes apparatus to loadand unload slightly raised platforms as units with work thereon.

One object of my invention is to provide an improved lifting apparatuswhich will serve as a station to receive a platform at the point desiredto thereafter lift the plat form as the load is taken off part by partwhereby the top of the load at any timeis approximately at the mostconvenient level.

Another object is to provide in combination with a plater table a set ofstations of the character described whereby one platform may be unloadedwhile another is loaded part by part all at the most convenient levelwhich is maintained by lifting or lowering the platforms according towhether they are being respectively unloaded or loaded.

Other objects of the invention will be apparent from the followingdetailed description and the scope of the annexed claims.

For the purposes of illustration, one preferred embodiment of theinvention as used in connection with a plater table is shown in theaccompanying drawing, in which- {Figure 1 is a plan view of the platformli t;

Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation thereof taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1and looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 3 is a sectional elevation taken on the line 33 of Fig. 1andlooking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 4c is a side elevation showing a preferred modification of a stepby step mechanism for use in connection with the platform lift- Fig. 5is an end elevation of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 and Fig. 7 are plan and side elevational views, respectively,which illustrate diagrammatically the application of the platform liftto a plater table;

Fig. 8 is a partial sectional elevation on an enlarged scale of theplatform lift applied to a plater table;

. Fig. 8 is a continued portion of Fig- 8 which is shown below in orderto permit an adequate scale to be employed, Figs. 8 and 8 should beimagined as joined together;

Fig. 9 is a sectional elevation on an enlarged scale of a detail of theplatform lift ing mechanism;

Fig. 10 is a sectional view taken on the line 1010 of Fig. 9 and lookingin the direction of the arrows; and i I Fig. 11 is a view similar toFig. 9 showing the parts in another position.

Referring to these drawings in detail and particularly to Figs. 1 to 8,inclusive, A represents a suitably braced frame, which is U-shaped inplan and is open at the top and at one end. Rotatably mounted on eitherside of the frame A near the top thereof are shafts 1 each of which havefixed thereto two or more drums 2. the frames are other shafts 3,mounted in parallel relation with shafts 1, which each bear two or moredrums l. Secured to each of the latter are cables 5 which pass upwardlyover the drums 2 and then down wardly and have their lower ends securedto a frame 6. This frame is substantially U-shaped and is preferablyformed from angle iron as shown. The two parallel hori zontal legs ofthe angle iron frame 6 are adapted to receive a platform B which is ofthe usual type employed with lifting trucks. In Fig. 2, C represents inconventional outline a lifting truck which is shown in lowered positionas about to be withdrawn leaving the platform B loaded with sheetmaterial D upon the frame 6.

The shafts 3 are each driven by bevel gearing to revolve in oppositedirections by a shaft 7 mounted at the rear of frame A 100 mate with theelement 8. Between the other face of the ratchet 9 and a suitable fixedsupport a is a loosely mounted lever which has a cam face (see Fig. 1).This lever coactswith a cam face on the part a and is adapted normallyto hold the clutch elements in 110 Near the bottom of cured on thelever, is a weightedpawl 12,

which normally tends to engage the ratchet 9. The lever 11, when pusheddownwardly .turns the ratchet 9 in an obvious manner,

and a spring 18 secured between the lever 11 and anysuitable supportreturns the lever after the downward movement. 14 represents a weightedpawl, which also acts on theratchet 9 to hold the latter in thewellknown way. Thus, by means of the mech anism' described, anoperatoricancause the load ofwsheet material D to be raised by suitableincrements.

Figs. 1 and 5 illustrate a preferred form of-step bystep mechanism foruse with the platform'lifting device just described. The shaft 7 isjournal'ed in a suitable support I) and has secured thereto a ratchetwheel 15. The latter has secured thereon or as an integral part thereofa brake drum 16 and passing partially around the latter is a brakeband'17, which is fixed at one end to the member 7) and at the other toa lever 18. This lever isllooselyjournaled on shaft 7 and has anoperating arm-19secured thereto whichmay be extended to any desiredpoint foeconvenientoperation. 11 represents the operating lever alreadydescribed, which bears a-weighted actuating pawl 20, and 21 is a similarweighted pawl pivoted in the bracket 6 toact as a holding pawl for theratchet 15. Thesepawls have projections 22 and'23 formed thereon, whichextend outwardly away from the ratchet 15, as clearly shown in Fig. 5 inconnection with pawl 21. The lever 18' has extensions thereon, whichbear inturned portions 24 and 25 and the latter are arranged'to engagethe projections 22 and 23,.When theleverlS is moved. Itwill thus be-seenthat the lever 11 acts as formerly to turn-the shaft 7 and raise theframe 6 with load thereonby increments but that an improved meansfor-lowering the frame 6 has been provided. Thus, when the frame is tobe lowered, the operator pulls the rod 19' and the lever 18 immediatelyforces-the brake band 17. against its drum 16: to check the descentofthe frame 6. At the-.sametim'e the inturned portions 24 and 25-actagainst projections 223m 23 to withdraw thezpawls 20' and 21 from theratchet 15, to permit descent of the load.

- :The general structure and arrangement of the platform "lifting device:has been described,r.a-nd the'application of this device to .ai"plater;.table'awill now be described.

Figs. Gnand .7;eshowiidiagrammatically the general layout of theapparatus. E is the usual plater table where books of paper to befinished are made up to be passed through the plater (notshown), andlater the books of finished paper are broken down after passing throughthe plater. The usual guides against which two sides of the sheets areplaced during the book making operation are indicated at f. Formed neareach end of the table E are vertical channels 0 in whichthe truckplatforms B heretofore mentioned are mounted for movement in a manner tobe described. The books are made up near the righthand end of the tableE, and the unfinished sheet material. is delivered by the righthandplatform B somewhat above the level ofthe table from whence they mayconveniently be taken by the operator engaged in making up the book. Theoperator, who breaks down the book, sits at the left-hand end of thetable and, as the book is broken down, lays the finished sheets upon thelefthand platform B. The two platforms are arranged, as will laterappear, to move in opposite directions, so that, as one load of sheetmaterial D is being delivered to an operator by a lifting platform,another load is being built up upon a lowering platform by anotheroperator.

Figs. 8 and 8" show respectively lifting and lowering platforms B havingsheet material D thereon. These platforms B, as described in connectionwith Fig. 1, have frames 6 operable by chains 26, which are carried onthe drums and shafts as already described. The step by step mechanism.shown in Figs. 1 and 5 and already described, is shown in the lowerright-hand portion of Fig. 8 as a means to actuate the shaft 7 to raisethe frame (3 by increments. This shaft 7 connected by a reversing gear27 (see Fig. 8") to a shaft 28 which operates the right-hand drums 2 andlin a similar manner, shaft 7, and the left-hand drums. Thus, as theoperator depresses the treadle 11, both platforms are moved byincrements in opposite directions.

It is customary in plater tables for the book making operator to receivethe sheets at a higher level than the table E. in fact. at the level ofthe top of guide f. It is. however, impracticable, as will be seen froman inspection of Fig. 8, to mount the drum 2 on the right-hand side ofplatform I) at a suflicient height to accomplish this purpose.Therefore, an attachment is pro vided for this special purpose, wherebyan additional lift above the level of the drum may be obtained. Thisdevice will now be described with particular reference to Figs. 9 to 11,inclusive. Secured to the U-shaped frame 6 is a bracket 30. wh ch hasspaced wings 31 extending outwardly into thepath of the chain 26. Thelatter is divided and has a connecting link 32 interposed between thedivided portions, as clearly shown in Figs. 9 and 11. On either side ofthe link 32 are bosses 33, which, as shown in Fig. 10, extend outwardlybeyond the spaced wings 31. These bosses 33 normally support the wings31 and thus the frame 6. The lower end of the chain 26 bears a bracket34: which has bosses 35 on either side thereof (see Fig. 10). Pivotallymounted in the bracket 34 is a link 36 which extends upwardly and ispivotally secured to the bracket 30. This lever 36 is slightly cantedfrom the vertical for a purpose to be described and due to this cant anoutward thrust is placed upon the bracket 34:. To hold the part 34against the thrust described, spaced vertical guide plates 9 areprovided upon which the bosses are adapted to ride as clearly shown inthe drawings. The plates 9 are suitably supported from the frame oftable E and are spaced suiiiciently to receive the drum 2 therebetween.

Fig. 9 shows the platform B being lifted by the link 32 and wings 31.Continued turning of drum 2 will carry the link 32 around the drum sothat the bosses 33 no longer underlie the wings 31. The lifting of theplatform is then continued by the link 36, as shown in Fig. 11, thewings 31 pass ing upwardly into a suitable recess in. the guide 7".Thus, it is possible to carry the top of platform B up to the level ofthe top of guide 7 with the lifting devices all arranged below the tableE out of the way of the operator. It is to be noted that, as the frame 6is lowered, the bracket 3-1 will finally strike the floor, and it isnecessary to provide means to remove the bracket and link 36 from thepath of frame 6 to permit the latter to engage the floor. To effect thispurpose the guides 9 (see Fig. 8 are cut away near the floor,and theoutward cant of the link 36 steers the bracket and link outwardly awayfrom the frame.

Assuming the left-hand frame 6 (see Figs. 8 and 8 to be lowered to thefloor and the right-hand frame to be in its uppermost position with aplatform B thereon, the general operation is as follows: An operatortakes a pile of unfinished sheet material, Which is loaded upon aplatform B, and transports the same by means of a suitable lifting truckto the left hand frame 6. The truck is backed into the open end of theU- shaped frame and then lowered to deposit the platform on the frame.One plater operator commences the making up of a book, taking sheetsfrom the top of the pile l) on the left-hand platform 13. The otherplater operator is engaged in breaking down a book and places thefinished sheets on top of the right-hand platform 13 and passes thesheets of zinc and linen to the making up operator. The latter operatorcontrols the step by step mechanism to operate both platforms and, fromtime to time, depresses the treadle 11 to lift her platform and lowerthe other platform. This operation is continued until the righthandplatform is loaded. The latter, if not already on the floor, is loweredby the treadle 11. A lifting truck is then backed under the right-handplatform, elevated to lift the platform from the floor, and the load offinished sheet material is drawn away. The handle 19 is then actuated,which releases the ratchets so that the lefthand platform 13 and frame 6drops by gravity, or against the brake 16-17, and lifts the right-handframe 6. A platform B is then placed on the latter, and a platformloaded with unfinished sheet material is wheeled into position on theleft-hand frame 6 and. the above described operations repeated.

It will thus be seen that the sheet handling mechanism describedoperates with the lifting truck to effect a large saving in laborheretofore thought necessary. It is no longer necessary to haveadditional operators to tend the two plater operators and supply themwith unfinished material and remove finished material. With thearrangement described, the platforms may conveniently be loaded andunloaded by the operators themselves, and a single other operator canreadily move the loaded platforms back and forth with a lifting truck tosupply a large number of plater tables.

It is recognized that many modifications may be made in the specificstructure heretofore described without departing from the scope of myinvention which is defined in the appended claims.

ll hat 1 claim is 1. A load lifting apparatus, comprising a loadsupporting frame adapted when in lowered position to lie closelyadjacent the floor, rotatable drums on opposite sides of the path ofsaid frame, one of said drums by necessity being lower than the other,flexible members passing over said drums and adapted to be wound up tolift the frame, means on said members operable to support said frameuntil they pass above the axes of their drums, and a supplementaryconnection between the frame and the member on the lower drum operable,when the means on the last-named member moves above the axis of itsdrum, to carry the frame above the latter to the level to which theframe is moved by the other member.

2. A load lifting apparatus, comprising a load supporting frame adaptedwhen in lowered position to lie closely adjacent the floor, rotatabledrums on opposite sides of the path of said frame, one of said drums bynecessity being lower than the other, flexible members passing over saiddrums and adapted to be wound up to lift the frame, means on saidmembers operable to support said frame untilthey pass above the aXes oftheir drums, and a supplementary connection between the frame and themember on the lower drum operable, when the means on the last-namedmember moves above thea'xis of its drum, to carry the frame above thelatter to the level to which the frame is moved by the other member, andmeans whereby said supplementary connection may be moved out of the pathof the frame as the latter approaches the floor so that the frame may bepositioned closely adjacent the latter in its lowered position.

3. An apparatus for lifting loads, comprising, a frame to receive theload and adapted when in lowered position to lie closely adjacent thefloor, rotatable drums on opposite sides of the path of said frame, thedrum on one side of said frame being lower than that on the other sideof the frame, flexible members passing over said drums and adapted to bewound up to lift the frame, and means connecting the members and frame,the connecting means for the lower drum including a deviceron theflexible member normally supporting the frame and movable around thedrum out of supporting engagement with the frame, and a link connectingthe frame to the flexible member below said device, said link beingoperable to lift the frame above the actuating shaft, operableconnections from the latter to the frame arranged to move the fame, aratchet on said shaft, a lever arranged for foot operation, a pawlthereon arranged normally to engage said ratchet, a holding pawl forsaid ratchet, whereby said frame may be lift-ed by increments, a drumfixed on said shaft, a second lever loose on said shaft, a. brake bandfor said drum operable by said second lever, projections on each of saidpawls engageable by said lever to withdraw said pawls from engagementwith said ratchet, whereby the frame may descend by gravity and itsdescent may be checked by said brake.

An apparatus for lifting loads, comprising, a frame on which the loadmay be deposited, rotatable drums, flexible members passing over saiddrums, means on said members to support the frame, said members adaptedto be wound up to lift the frame, and means connecting the frame to apoint on said members below the first named means, and a device torotate said drums, said last-named means being operable by movement ofthe members to lift the frame above the first named means and above thedrums.

6. An apparatus for lifting loads, comprising, a frame on which the loadmay be deposited, rotatable drums, flexible members passing over thelatter and adapted to be'wound up to lift the frame, means on themembers to support the frame, said means being movable out of supportingengagement with the frame as the latter approaches the end of its uppertravel, parts pivotally connected to the members below said means andpivotally connected to said frame, and a device to rotate said drums,said parts being operable to support the frame after said means havemoved out of supporting en agement with the frame and to lift the frameabove said drums.

lVILLIAM F. IRRGANG.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G.

